Resist Hollywood and Bollywood Culture: Sasikumar

A seminar on “Is cinema of resistance possible?” was conducted in connection with IFFK here. Noted journalist Sasikumar opened the discussion by pointing out the need to resist the culture of Hollywood films and mainstream Bollywood films. He also spoke about bridging the void between lived reality and artistic reality. He stressed the need to breakdown stereotype foreign cinema. He questioned why rural India was using represent in popular cinema. Teresa Prata, the director of “Sleepwalking Land’ a feature in competition section of the IFFK 2007, Sasikumar, Journalist and academician, Madhusree Dutta documentary filmmaker and Vidhyarthi Chatterje, noted film critic were the participants in the seminar. N. Madhavan Kutty , senior journalist moderated the discussion. Teresa Prata, who spent her childhood in Mozambique, was of the opinion that filmmakers must have the motivation for the resistance of culture. For this they have to communicate on an acceptable aesthetic as well. She spoke of her use of surrealism as a platform to explain the resistance of culture, which she used in her film ”Sleepwalking Land”. The film she has brilliantly dealt with the subject of civil war in Mozambique.
Madhusrce Dutta , spoke of resistance as a genre and contended that culture of representing resistance had become prior over the reasons or things that the resistance was aimed at this. She was of the opinion that homogenization of people’s sensitivity. She claimed at that resistance itself could lead to hegemonies.
The seminar was well attended, with delegates from all over the world raising concerns and voicing their opinions of having a voice be it and or pro establishment.